Enter Hakku
Looking for Work The massive restaurant loomed before him. It looked more like it was a research center or college, it was that huge. The walk to the Hobble Restaurant felt like it was taking forever... his nerves probably had something to do with that. What am I thinking? This is a Four-Star Restaurant! There's no way they'll hire me just walking in off the street... he thought as the doors slowly grew closer. His heart felt like it was about to beat its way out of his chest, leap out and flee in the opposite direction. It's not like I have any other choice... he added. This is probably the last place around that hasn't thrown me out or been warned by other Chefs about me... He had been to every other restaurant in Gourmet Town and they had all fired him after a couple of days of work. It was probably his fault, after all his luck was abysmal. In the couple of days he worked at the other restaurants, he had cost them hundreds of thousands through his mistakes. "Can I help you?" a voice broke into his worrying. He had been so wrapped up in his thought that he hadn't realized that he had reached and entered the building. "Huh? Oh! Yes... um..." he stammered. "I... I was hoping I could get a job... h-here." Upon entering the establishment, all that could be heard were sounds of chatter and quiet clanking of silverware with plates of food, followed up with small talks of mummers. Footsteps came towards the person, showing a young woman with her hair in two-buns and in a waiter's outfit coming towards him, holding what looked like a menu. "Welcome to the Hobble Restaurant, how can we best serve you today?" She inquired, looking up and down at the man. In her mind, the woman couldn't help but feel the sadness emanating from him. It made her want to vomit. "I'm Hakku Awarena and I'm l-looking for work." he replied. He could tell that she wasn't enjoying his presence. It was something he learned to tell, even if someone didn't show it on their face or obviously through their body language, he could tell when people were repulsed by him. "I'm a Chef-in-training..." he added. "But! But I'm willing to do anything. I'll take out the trash, I'll wash the dishes, I'll sharpen the knives, anything." He paused, realizing he was starting to ramble and sound far too desperate. Even if he was that desperate, it probably wasn't best to act it... "Please, I need the work..." "Ugh, another one..." She muttered, looking over to one of the other waitresses. The woman came towards her and handed her the menu she had. With that action, the girl walked over to greet the customers that now came in through the door. "Name's Tori. If you're actually serious about this, then follow me," the purple-haired woman commanded, making her way to the kitchen with the man following her. 'Kitchen' When they both entered, a large cluster of people could be seen all around them, some plating the finished foods and others gathering new ingredients from the storage. All of them under the direction of the Sous Chef, Michelle, who was coordinating everything by hand movements. She sensed her younger sister and turned to see Tori standing with Hakku. After asking one of the other chefs to take over, she walked over towards them and stopped, looking at the two. "Is there a reason you're not waiting on people, little sister?" She inquired with annoyance. "Don't blame me, blame this guy," she snarked back, grabbing the man and pushing him forward a bit, "He's your problem now." With that, the younger sister left the older one to deal with the new face. "I'm sorry about that, my sister is kind of a hot-head, my name is Michelle. It's a pleasure to meet you." "It's n-nice to meet you too." Hakku replied. He stood there, feeling a little awkward, since Tori hadn't really said why he was there and didn't know if he should just tell her why he was there. "I'm here f-for work." he said, it felt like it had been a long time to him but it was actually only a couple of seconds after his last sentence. "Alright we'll start you off washing dishes and filling in where necessary." Michelle said after some contemplation on where to place the new hire. She wasn't aware that she was feeling something very similar to what her sister had felt in the presence of this young man. Sick. "Thank you!" Hakku said with a huge, relieved grin and a bow before heading over to where the dishes were slowly piling up. He set to work immediately. 'Hours Later' Around the restaurant, the soothing atmosphere gave many of the customers an enjoyable evening while they enjoyed the food that served to them by Tori and the other waiters. Though soon, that feeling found itself broken with the sounds of breaking dishes that came from the kitchen. It made most of the people look towards the kitchen window, viewing the disaster that unfolded right before their eyes. Hakku showed to have some incredibly bad luck, which started when he burned himself with the scolding hot water as he tried to wash the dishes. After managing to get them finished, he attempted to grab a stack to take towards the chefs who were still in the process of cooking, but due to some of the soap he squirted on the floor, he found himself sliding. After crashing right into the meat-station of the kitchen, the dishes went flying all over the place. Some plates broke when they landed on the floor, others when they landed on top of the counters, and some that even broke on the foods that were already prepared. Due to this, some of the dishes had to be delayed. "I need someone to get the spare plates from storage now!" Michelle barked as one of the chefs went running quickly. She knew some people who were klutzes before, but Hakku was by far one of the worst she had witnessed. "Hakku, I need you to get a broom and sweep all these pieces and the ones on the counter too." Hakku nodded and rushed off to find the broom closet, though not before slipping again and knocking some of the replacement food on the floor. Most of the rest of the kitchen staff glared after him. He came to a pair of doors and opened the first one he came to. A gust of wind struck him immediately, along with a lot of dust and other debris. The once pristinely clean kitchen behind him was now covered in dirt and plant matter. There followed a lot of very angry muttering and a very faint blood lust. Hakku quietly closed the exit door and opened the door to the broom closet. The contents of which came pouring out like an avalanche and buried the poor, young, white-haired man. From the pile of mops, buckets and other cleaning supplies, a single arm was seen sticking out of the wreckage clutching a push broom. After the last customer left the area and most of the chefs returned to their homes after finishing the kitchen, a calming silence now inhabited the restaurant. The only two left were Michelle, who was doing inventory on the food supplies and other ingredients they had, and Hakku, who was in another part of the kitchen. There was tension between the two, mostly coming from Hakku. Knowing that in a way, he felt like all the bad luck was his fault, he didn't want to say anything that would ruin his chances of staying. After putting down the clipboard, Michelle opened her chef's uniform and began to fan herself, feeling the drips of sweat coming down her neck and gently moving over her exposed cleavage. "Man, always gets hot in the kitchen. Still wanna work in one?" The Sous-Chef jestered, turning over to see if any kind of reaction would come from him. Nothing did. She heard what sounded like sharpening instead and knew the sound well, it was the sound of him sharpening cooking knifes. Curosity got the best of her as she walked over and looked over his shoulder. The view was something of a wonder in her eyes. All the blades that remained in the kitchen were lined up along the counter to Hakku's left. Each one sharper than she had seen them in years. She picked up one of the blades, carefully turning it in her hands. The blade felt sharp enough to easily cut the very air around it. Turning the blade so she could see the edge, there was no reflection of light to indicate a dull spot. She then ran a quick gambit of other tests for the blade's sharpness and it easily passed every one of them. Michelle couldn't remember the last time someone entered the Hobble Kitchen with such remarkable Knife Sharpening skills. Seems hiring this boy wasn't a mistake after all. she thought with a smirk. Then, she had an idea. "Hakku," she called out, causing the young man to turn over and look at her with fear in his eyes. "Hey, relax, you're not in trouble. I wanted to tell you that you won't have to worry about tomorrow, we usually close around this time to allow me to go on a trip with my Combo partner, and I was wondering if you'd like to go with us?" He stood there shocked and confused about the offer. Trying to understand what exactly was being offered and, maybe a little more important to him, why... At the same time, Hakku figured that this wasn't a common offer to the rest of the kitchen staff. "Y-yeah! I'll come along!" he happily exclaimed. Then he paused, a new thought striking him. "W-where are we g-going... exactly?" Category:Chapter Category:A Decaying Beginning